William g



June 18, 1929.

W. G. ESMOND STEEL BARGE STRUCTURE Filed Oct. 29, i927 INVENTOR Qilsmond) km b ATTORNEY Patented June 18, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM G. ESMOND, OF STRATFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO EDGAR AMES, OF

NEW YORK, N. Y.

STEEL-BARG-E STRUCTURE.

Application filed October 29, 1927. Serial No. 229,668.

My present invention relates to an improvement in marine vessels, and while in the pres ent instance it is shown as being directed to structural improvements for use on barges or similar type of craft, it is to be understood that the herein invention. is not to be so limited.

The invention relates to an improvement in gunwales of such craft, as, for instance, steel barges and the like, wherein means are provided whereby to modify the gunwale construction of such vessels in ways hereinafter to be pointed out, at a lesser cost than heretofore, with a distinct advantage in appearance and strength.

This improvement is so arranged as to increase the thickness of the gunwale and associate portions of the vessel or barge, these types of vessels usually being made of steel.

In use, considerable damage has been done in the past due to contact and collision with similar and other craftin congested harbors or shipways, and such contacts and collisions are difficult to avoid owing to the nature of the work to which these vessels are put. In order to prevent damage to the barges it has been the past practice to reinforce the upper gunwale section thereof with a thick hull and shear conforming plate, which is riveted to the steel structure of the barge itself, this plate having the effect of thickening the gunwale portion of the vessel causing this portion standing out of the plane of the side channels forming the remainder of the barge in such a manner as to act as a rubbing strip or collision piece.

In my present construction I have provided a structure that does away with the old style of rubbing strip and with the large amount of labor that is necessary to drill, rivet and position these rubbing strips in place, and this is done by constructing the upper or gunwale section of the barge, or any other indicated place, of a channel of suliiciently thicker dimension, in the web, over the standard channels used in the remainder of the hull construction.

These oversize channels are positioned in such a manner that the added thickness protrudes out beyond the plane of the barges hull at the desired points, thereby acting to receive all rubbing and impact, and eliminating a large amount of the drilling and rivethereto'fore practiced whieh tr m; only add to the construction expense of such a vessel, but provide numerous points where leakage could occur, due to damage to the rivet heads,

all of which is obviated by the herein construetion.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a partial sectional view of a characteristic gunwale' of a barge embodying my improvement,

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary outside view of my construction showing some of the characteristic details and the improvement,

Fig. 3 is a side view of a barge showing the collision piece in position,

Fig. 4- is a partial sectional view of a modified form of collision piece,

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the filler pieces, and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of another modification of Fig. 1.

In general, a characteristic type of vessel to which my improvement may be applied is shown in United States Patent No. 805,468 issued Nov. 28, 1905, in which there is shown a characteristic type of barge construction to which, among its many uses, my invention can be adapted.

In Fig. 3 there is disclosed one form of barge having an outstanding rubbing or collision strip 7, of the form hereinafter to be described.

In Fig. 1 the barge hull construction is shown. as comprising a number of channel beams 1 which form the lower or hull portion of the barge, these channels being provided with flanges 2, said flanges being mounted one upon another and suitably joined by riveting and being attached to a channel frame portion 3, Fig. 1, which is notched at 2 to receive the flanges 2, therein, as in customary practice.

The upper or gunwale construction involving my improved rubbing strip is made up of a plurality of similar channel beams 41: connected to one another as described for the channels 1 with the difference that while they are also affixed to the frame 3, the web portion 5 thereof is very much thicker than the web portion 5 of the channels 1 so that when the gunwale channel construction is assembled to the frame structure 3 and riveted by connecting the outstandingflanges 2 of the gunwale channels together by rivets, the gem-vale surface 7 stands eat away from the lower hull structure formed by the channels 1 to the extent of the differences denoted by 8, Fig. 1, thereby affording a thicker, stronger hull reinforcing portion "at this point, and by standing out beyond the channels 1 as described, they are in advance position to receive all wearing damage, rubbing and colliding forces.

As another form of collision strip structure I have shown, in Fig. 4, an alternate form of construction comprising the same detailed hull construction as set forth for Figs. 1 and 2, with the exception that the channels 5, Fig. l, are of the same dimensions as the hull-forming channels 4., Fig. 1, but are themselves offset, as at 8, Fig. i, to form a rubbin g strip 7.

Owing to the fact that the channels 5, Fig. l, are of the same dimensions as above set forth, they require the use of filler pads 9, Fig. 5, between the inside face of the strip channels 5 and the notched flange face 10 of the frame member 3, to compensate for the offset of the stripforming channels 5 out of plane with the cooperating hull forming channels 6, Fig. 4.

In Fig. 6 there is shown a second modification of my proposed structure in which the indices illustrating the various parts are identical with those shown in Fig. 1, but the difference in construction is that the collision strip forming channel beams are alternated with hull forming channels 1, in such a manner that in general the collision or rubbing strip 7 comprises a plurality of spaced-apart offset channel members t which are not contiguously associated as described for Fig. 1.

From this latter description it will be ascertained that in the modification as in the preferred form of construction, the rubbing or colliding strip is formed by too outer face of the strip forming channels at and 5 being offset out of plane with the hull channels. In both forms the rivets 11 holding the strip forming channels to the frame 3 may be countersunk at the outside of said strip, into said strips, thereby leaving a flush outer sur face, and eliminating the shearing of the heads of the rivets accidently.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a structure for barges, of the class described, in combination with a framing therefor and ahull made of channels, a collision strip comprising a plurality of channels located upon said frame, the outer surfaces of which are located offset to the plane of the hull the collision strip channels having a web thicker than the web of said hull channels.

2. In a structure for barges of the class described, in combination with a framing therefor and a lower hull portion made of channels, a collision strip comprising a plurality of upper channels located upon said frame the outer surfaces of which are located offset to the plane of the lower hull portion the collision strip channels having a web thicker than the web of said hull channels.

In a structure for barges of the class described, in combination with a framing therefor and a hull made of channels, a colli sion strip comprising a plurality of channels located upon said frame, the outer surfaces of which are located offset to the plane of the hull, said offset strip-forming channels being riveted to said framing with countersunl; headed rivets to form a flush surface on said strip the collision strip channels having a web thicker than the web of said hull channels.

4-. In a structure for barges of the class described, in combination with a framing therefor and a lower channel formed 11 ull portion, a collision strip comprising a plurality of upper channels located upon said frame the outer surfaces of which are located. offset to the plane of the lower hull portion, said offset strip-forming channels being riveted to said framing with countersunk headed rivets to form a flush surface on said strip the collision strip channels having a web thicker than the web of said hull channels.

5. A collision strip for barges as described, comprising a hull structure made of channels, a framing therefor, said collision strip comprising a plurality of channels mounted to said framing, said latter channels having a web thicker than the web of said hull forming channels.

6. A collision strip for barges, as described, comprising a lower hull structure made of channels, a framing therefor, said collision strip comprising a plurality of channels mounted to said framing and above said hull structure, said latter channels having a web thicker than and extending over the web of said hull forn'iing channels.

7. A. collision strip for barges, as described, comprising a hull structure made of channels, a framing therefor, said collision strip comprising a plurality of channels mounted to said framing, said latter channels having a web thicker than the web of said hull forming channels, the outer surface of said collision strip channels projecting exteriorly of the plane of said hull forming channels by the difference in the thickness between said strip and bull forming channels.

8. A collision strip for barges, as described, comprising a lower hull structure made of channels, a framing therefor, said collision strip comprising a plurality of channels mounted over said hull channels and secured to said framing, said collision strip channels having their webs offset from the plane of the webs of said hull forming channels, the outer surface of said collision strip channels projecting out of the plane of said hull forming channels by a difference of the thickness between said strip andhull. forming channels.

9. A collision strip for barges, as described, in combination with a hull structure made of channels, a framing therefor, said collision strip comprising a plurality of channels mounted to said framing, said latter channels having a Web thicker than the Web of said hull forming channels, the outer surface of said collision strip channels projecting out eXteriorly of the plane of said hull forming channels by the difierence in the thickness between said strip and hull forming channels, said latter strip forming channels being riveted to said framing by countersunk headed rivets to form a flush surface on the exterior of said latter channels.

10. A collision strip for barges, as de scribed, comprising a hull structure made of channels, a framing therefor, said collision strip comprising a plurality of channels mounted to said framing and above said hull structure, said latter channels having a Web thicker than the Web of said hull forming channels, the outer surface of said latter channels projecting out of the plane of said hull forming channels, said latter strip forming channels being riveted to said framing by countersunk headed rivets to form a flush surface on the exterior of said latter channels.

11. A collision strip for barges, in combination with a hull structure made of channels, a framing therefor, said collision strip comprising a plurality of channels used in said hull structure, and a plurality of channels of thicker Webs than said hull channels.

12. In combination, in a barge, a hull structure, a framing, a collision strip structure, said hull and collision structures comprising a plurality of structural shapes mounted to said framing, the faces of said structural shapes in contact With said framing being in alinement, the exterior faces of the structural shapes in the collision strip structure being located ofl'set relative to the exterior faces of the shapes in the hull structure.

Signed at New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 29th day of August A. D. 1927.

WILLIAM G. ESMON D. 

